U.S. Pat. No. 5,281,855, incorporated by reference in its entirety herein, discloses a method and apparatus for facilitating interconnection of lead wires to an integrated circuit including the provision of an additional protective layer of insulation to the top of an integrated circuit chip or die and the provision of enlarged plated electrodes to the surface of the additional insulation to form enhanced bonding pads, such pads being electrically connected through the protective layers to the normal bonding pads of the integrated circuit device. The enhanced bonding pads are made of a soft conductive metal such that external wires to be attached thereto can be bonded to the pads using a thermal compression bonding technique.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,088,230, incorporated by reference in its entirety herein, discloses a procedure for producing a transponder unit (55) provided with at least one chip (16) and one coil (18), and in particular a chip card/chip-mounting board (17) wherein the chip and the coil are mounted on one common substrate (15) and the coil is formed by installing a coil wire (21) and connecting the coil-wire ends (19, 23) to the contact surfaces (20, 24) of the chip on the substrate.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,698,089, incorporated by reference in its entirety herein, discloses a device for the contacting of a wire conductor (113) in the course of the manufacture of a transponder unit arranged on a substrate (111) and comprising a wire coil (112) and a chip unit (115), wherein in a first phase the wire conductor (113) is guided away via the terminal area (118, 119) or a region accepting the terminal area and is fixed on the substrate (111) relative to the terminal area (118, 119) or the region assigned to the terminal area by a wire guide and a portal, and in a second phase the connection of the wire conductor (113) to the terminal area (118,119) is effected by means of a connecting instrument (125). See also U.S. Pat. No. 6,233,818, incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.
Canada Patent Application CA 2555034 discloses a method for the production of a book-type security document with at least one security cambric (15) and at least one transponder unit (21), characterized in that: at least one laminated layer (22, 23) is applied at least on one side of the at least one security cambric (4 5) and on at least one side of the at least one transponder unit (21); the at least one security cambric (15) and the at least one transponder unit (21) are fully encompassed by the laminated layers (22, 23) and that a circumferential, closed edge (24) is provided by the laminated layers (22, 231, and that a laminated layer sheath (25) is formed.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,229,022 discloses method for producing a contactless chip card and chip card. A method for producing a transponder, especially a contactless chip card (1) comprises at least one electronic component (chip module 2) and at least one antenna (3); the at least one electronic chip component (2) being disposed on a non-conducting substrate that serves as a support for the component. The at least one antenna is also disposed on a non-conducting substrate, the at least one electronic component (2) being applied to a first substrate and the antenna (3) on a second substrate. The entire circuit (1) is then produced by joining the individual substrates so that they are correctly positioned relative to each other. The components (2, 3) are contacted once the different substrates have been joined by means of auxiliary materials such as solder or glue, or without auxiliary materials by microwelding. The non-conducting substrates form a base card body.
Definitions
As used herein, an “inlay” is a generally planar substrate (or sheet), which may include several (a plurality of) distinct “transponder areas” (or “transponder sites”), arranged for example in a 3×6 array on the planar substrate. The inlay sheet may have one or more (multiple) layers, including one or more “top layers” and one or more “bottom layers”. A “transponder” may be fabricated in each “transponder area”. Each “transponder” may include an antenna, which is mounted to a surface (such as a top layer) of the substrate, and a “transponder chip” which is installed at a “transponder chip site” (or “site for the transponder chip”) on the substrate. The antenna is typically in the form of a flat coil having two ends, which are connected to bond pads (terminals) on the “transponder chip”. The “transponder chip” may be an individual integrated circuit (IC) chip, or a chip module (such as a chip mounted to a small substrate or a carrier). The “transponder chip site” of the “transponder” (“transponder area” of the “inlay sheet”) may comprise a recess (or window, or opening) extending through the top and one or more underlying layers of the substrate, such that the “transponder chip” can be installed in the recess, submerged below (or even with) the top surface of the planar substrate and supported by an underlying layer of the planar substrate. A window may extend completely through the planar substrate so that a transponder chip or chip module may be installed from an opposite (from the antenna) side of the planar substrate.
As used herein, the word “chip” can encompass many configurations of a silicon die or a packaged chip. The silicon die for example can have metalized bumps to facilitate the direct connection of the wire ends of an antenna to form a transponder or tag device. A packaged chip can include various structures such as a tape automated bonding module, a chip module, a flip chip module, a lead frame, a chip carrier, a strap, an interposer or any form of packaging to facilitate transponder manufacturing.
Regarding metalized bumps on chips, normally chips (also referred to as “dice”, plural of “die”) have aluminum pads 100×100 microns in dimension. Gold bumps may be sputtered or plated onto the aluminum pads and rise 25 microns above the pads. Enhanced pads or so-called “mega bumps” can be large and can be mounted over the active structure of a die.
An inlay substrate typically has a plurality, such as an array of transponder sites on a substrate which matches the position of the data or graphics on a printed sheet or holder/cover page of a smart card or electronic passport respectively. An “inlay” is generally a semi-finished product that requires additional layers of material (e.g., printed sheet) to complete a “final product” (e.g., electronic passport or smart card).
An inlay with an array of transponder sites may be produced by placing sheets of synthetic material or coated paper on top of each other with an antenna or antennae and electronic components at each site sandwiched between layers of sheet material. To integrate the electronic components such as an RFID chip module, a cavity at each site is punched into one or more of the top layers, in order to protect the chip modules during hot lamination.
“RFID” is short for “Radio Frequency Identification”. An RFID device interacts, typically at a limited distance, with a “reader”, and may be either “passive” (powered by the reader) or “active” (having its own power source, such as a battery). As used herein, a transponder may comprise an RFID chip (either passive or active) connected to an antenna. (A “transponder chip” may be an “RFID chip”.)
An Inlay and Transponder of the Prior Art
FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate an inlay substrate (or sheet) 100 having a plurality of transponder areas. A selected one of the transponder areas 102 constituting a single transponder is shown in detail. The vertical and horizontal dashed lines (in FIG. 1A) are intended to indicate that there may be additional transponder areas (and corresponding additional transponders) disposed to the left and right of, as well as above and below, the transponder area 102, on the inlay sheet 100. Such a plurality of transponders may be arranged in an array on the (larger) inlay sheet. As best viewed in FIG. 1B, the inlay sheet 100 may be a multi-layer substrate 104 comprising one or more upper (top) layers 104a and one or more lower (bottom) layers 104b. 
A recess 106 may be formed in the upper layer 104a, at a “transponder chip site”, so that a transponder chip 108 may be disposed in the recess, and supported by the lower layer 104b. The transponder chip 108 is shown having two terminals 108a and 108b on a top surface thereof.
Generally, the recess 106 is sized and shaped to accurately position the transponder chip 108, having side dimensions only slightly larger than the transponder chip 108 to allow the transponder chip 108 to be located within the recess. For example,                the transponder chip 108 may measure: 5.0×8.0 mm        the recess 106 may measure: 5.1×8.1 mm        the terminals 108a/b may measure: 5.0×1.45 mm        the wire (discussed below) may have a diameter between 60 and 112 μmOne millimeter (mm) equals one thousand (1000) micrometers (μm, “micron”).        
In FIGS. 1A and 1B, the recess 106 may be illustrated with an exaggerated gap between its inside edges and the outside edges of the chip 108, for illustrative clarity. In reality, the gap may be only approximately 50 μm-100 μm (0.05 mm-0.1 mm).
In FIG. 1A the terminals 108a and 108b are shown reduced in size (narrower in width), for illustrative clarity. (From the dimensions given above, it is apparent that the terminals 108a and 108b can extend substantially the full width of the transponder chip 108.)
It should be understood that the transponder chip 108 is generally snugly received within the recess 106, with dimensions suitable that the chip 108 does not move around after being located within the recess 106, in anticipation of the wire ends 110a, 110b being bonded to the terminals 108a, 108b. As noted from the exemplary dimensions set forth above, only very minor movement of the chip 108, such as a small fraction of a millimeter (such as 50 μm-100 μm) can be tolerated. In relative terms, the gap between the inside edge of the recess 106 (e.g., 0.1 mm) and a side edge of the chip 108 is only approximately up to 2% of a chip dimension. (0.1/5.0=2%; 0.1/8.0=1.25%; 0.05/5.0=1%; 0.05/8.0=0.6%).
As best viewed in FIG. 1A, an antenna wire 110 is disposed on a top surface (side) of the substrate, and may be formed into a flat (generally planar) coil, having two end portions 110a and 110b. 
As best viewed in FIG. 1B, the antenna wire is “mounted” to the substrate, which includes “embedding” (countersinking) the antenna wire into the surface of the substrate, or “adhesively placing” (adhesively sticking) the antenna wire on the surface of the substrate. In either case (embedding or adhesively placing), the wire typically feeds out of a capillary 116 of an ultrasonic wire guide tool (not shown). The capillary 116 is typically disposed perpendicular to the surface of the substrate 100. The capillary 116 is omitted from the view in FIG. 1A, for illustrative clarity.
The antenna wire may be considered “heavy” wire (such as 60 μm) and requires higher bonding loads than those used for “fine” wire (such as 30 μm). Rectangular section copper ribbon (such as 60×30 μm) can be used in place of round wire.
The capillary 116 may be vibrated by an ultrasonic vibration mechanism (not shown), so that it vibrates in the vertical or longitudinal (z) direction, such as for embedding the wire in the surface of the substrate, or in a horizontal or transverse (y) direction, such as for adhesively placing the wire on the surface of the substrate. In FIG. 1B, the wire 110 is shown slightly spaced (in drawing terminology, “exploded” away) from the substrate, rather than having been embedded (countersunk) in or adhesively placed (stuck to) on the surface of the substrate.
The antenna wire 110 may be mounted in the form of a flat coil, having two ends portions 110a and 110b. The ends portions 110a and 110b of the antenna coil wire 110 are shown extending over (FIG. 1A) and may subsequently be connected, such as by thermal-compression bonding (not shown), to the terminals 108a and 108b of the transponder chip 108, respectively.
Examples of embedding a wire in a substrate, in the form of a flat coil, and a tool for performing the embedding (and a discussion of bonding), may be found in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 6,698,089 (refer, for example, to FIGS. 1, 2, 4, 5, 12 and 13 of the patent). It is known that a coated, self-bonding wire will stick to a synthetic (e.g., plastic) substrate because when vibrated sufficiently to soften (make sticky) the coating and the substrate.
In FIG. 1B, the wire 110 is shown slightly spaced (in drawing terminology, “exploded” away) from the terminals 108a/b of the transponder chip 108, rather than having been bonded thereto, for illustrative clarity. In practice, this is generally the situation—namely, the end portions of the wires span (or bridge), the recess slightly above the terminals to which they will be bonded, in a subsequent step. Also illustrated in FIG. 1B is a “generic” bond head, poised to move down (see arrow) onto the wire 110b to bond it to the terminal 108b. The bond head 118 is omitted from the view in FIG. 1A, for illustrative clarity.
The interconnection process can be inner lead bonding (diamond tool), thermal compression bonding (thermode), ultrasonic bonding, laser bonding, soldering, ColdHeat soldering (Athalite) or conductive gluing.
As best viewed in FIG. 1A, in case the antenna wire 110 needs to cross over itself, such as is illustrated in the dashed-line circled area “c” of the antenna coil, it is evident that the wire should typically be an insulated wire, generally comprising a metallic core and an insulation (typically a polymer) coating. Generally, it is the polymer coating that facilitates the wire to be “adhesively placed” on (stuck to) a plastic substrate layer. (It is not always the case that the wire needs to cross over itself. See, for example, FIG. 4 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,698,089).
In order to feed the wire conductor back and forth through the ultrasonic wire guide tool, a wire tension/push mechanism (not shown) can be used or by application of compressed air it is possible to regulate the forward and backward movement of the wire conductor by switching the air flow on and off which produces a condition similar to the Venturi effect.
By way of example, the wire conductor can be self-bonding copper wire or partially coated self bonding copper wire, enamel copper wire or partially coated enamel wire, silver coated copper wire, un-insulated wire, aluminum wire, doped copper wire or litz wire.
By way of example, the substrate can be PVC, PC, PE, PET, PETE, TYVEK, TESLIN, C-FLEX, Paper or Cotton/Noil. The substrate can also have special markings such as luminous threads, water marks, microscopic filings and optical polymer memory for additional security.
FIG. 1A herein resembles FIG. 5 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,698,089 (the '089 patent), which has a similar coil antenna (50) with an initial coil region (51) and a final coil region (52) comparable to the antenna 110 with two end portions 110a and 110b described herein. In the '089 patent, the coil (50) is arranged on a substrate 55 which comprises a substrate recess (56, compare 106 herein) in the interior region (53) of the coil (50).
In FIG. 5 of the '089 patent, it can be seen that the initial and final coil regions (end portions) of the wires extend across the recess. In FIG. 6 of the '089 patent, it can be seen that the recess extends completely through the substrate. If the antenna is mounted to the substrate prior to the chip being installed in the recess (and the antenna is mounted to the front/top surface/side of the substrate, as shown), due to the fact that the antenna wires are “blocking” entry to the recess from the top/front surface of the substrate, the chip must be installed into the recess from the back (bottom) side of the substrate, as indicated by FIG. 6 of the '089 patent.
FIG. 7 of the '089 patent shows the subsequent (inter)connection of the terminal areas 59 of the chip unit 58 to the initial coil region 51 and to the final coil region 52 by means of a thermode 60 which under the influence of pressure and temperature creates a connection by material closure between the wire conductor 20 and the terminal areas 59, as an overall result of which a card module 64 is formed.
Glossary & Definitions
Unless otherwise noted, or as may be evident from the context of their usage, any terms, abbreviations, acronyms or scientific symbols and notations used herein are to be given their ordinary meaning in the technical discipline to which the disclosure most nearly pertains. The following terms, abbreviations and acronyms may be used throughout the descriptions presented herein and should generally be given the following meaning unless contradicted or elaborated upon by other descriptions set forth herein. Some of the terms set forth below may be registered trademarks (®).    Chip As used herein, the word “chip” can encompass many configurations of a silicon die or a packaged chip. The silicon die for example can have metalized bumps to facilitate the direct connection of the wire ends of an antenna to form a transponder. A packaged chip can include various structures such as a tape automated bonding module, a chip module, a flip chip module, a lead frame, a chip carrier, a strap, an interposer or any form of packaging to facilitate transponder manufacturing.    Inlay An inlay substrate typically has a plurality, such as array of transponder sites on a substrate which matches the position of the data or graphics on a printed sheet or holder/cover page of a smart card or electronic passport respectively.    Litz wire Litz Wire is a special type of wire used in electronics. It consists of many thin wires, individually coated with an insulating film and braided, thus increasing the surface area of the conductor and thereby reducing the skin effect and associated power losses when used with high-frequency applications.    PVC short for polyvinyl chloride, (IUPAC Polychloroethene). PVC is a widely used thermoplastic polymer. It can be made softer and more flexible by the addition of plasticizers, the most widely used being phthalates.    PET short for Polyethylene terephthalate (also known as PET, PETE or the obsolete PETP or PET-P). PET is a thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family that produced by the chemical industry and is used in synthetic fibers; beverage, food and other liquid containers; thermoforming applications; and engineering resins often in combination with glass fiber. It is one of the most important raw materials used in man-made fibers.    PETE see PET.    Teslin™ Teslin is a synthetic printing media, manufactured by PPG Industries. Teslin is a waterproof synthetic material that works well with an Inkjet printer, Laser printer, or Thermal printer. Teslin is also single-layer, uncoated film, and extremely strong. In fact, the strength of the lamination peel of a Teslin sheet is 2-4 times stronger than other coated synthetic and coated papers. Teslin comes in the sizes of 7 mil to 18 mil, though only sizes 10 mil and 14 mil are sized at 8.5″ by 11″, for printing with most consumer printers. Also available are perforated versions of Teslin, specifically, 2up, 6up, and 8up.    Tyvek™ Tyvek is a brand of spunbonded olefin, a synthetic material made of high-density polyethylene fibers; the name is a registered trademark of the DuPont Company. The material is very strong; it is difficult to tear but can easily be cut with scissors or any other sharp object. Water vapor can pass through Tyvek, but not liquid water, so the material lends itself to a variety of applications: medical packaging, envelopes, car covers, air and water intrusion barriers (housewrap) under house siding, labels, wristbands, mycology, and graphics.    RFID Short for “Radio Frequency Identification”. An RFID device interacts, typically at a limited distance, with a “reader”, and may be either “passive” (powered by the reader) or “active” (having its own power source, such as a battery).    Transponder As used herein, a transponder is an RFID chip (either passive or active) connected to an antenna.